This invention relates to ice making machines and more particularly to an improved under the counter ice making machine.
In the past, under the counter ice making machines have included removable houses. The houses from front to back have included access doors hinged at the bottom for accessing ice bins located in ice bin compartments. The ice bins are supported by frames having ends attached to the doors and housings in order that when the doors are opened, the ice bins are pulled out of the bin compartments with the doors for easy bin access. Behind the ice bin compartment rear walls are compressor type refrigerator components such as, for example, the compressors and condensers. Condenser fans are mounted in the ice bin compartment's rear walls for drawing cooled air from the compartments for the condensers. The refrigerator evaporators to which the ice cube molds are attached are located in the ice bin compartments above the ice bins. The ice bins receive the ice cubes when harvested.
Although several types of evaporators exist, the one of most interest to the present invention includes vertically disposed coils to which a plate bearing ice cube mold forming strips is attached. During the freezing process, water is flowed over the ice cube mold, collected in a water trough positioned beneath the evaporator and recirculated continuously first to freeze ice cubes and then to form an ice bridge interconnecting the ice cubes for harvest. During the freezing process, a splash curtain in front of the evaporator constrains the flowing water to the collection trough. Harvest is accomplished by passing hot gas from the compressor through the evaporator coils to heat the ice cube mold walls to release the ice cubes therefrom, while pushing the ice cube bearing slabs away from the evaporator for depositing the ice cubes in the ice bin. Those persons skilled in the art desiring more information concerning the evaporator and harvest probe are referred to U.S. Pat. No. 4,341,087 issued July 27, 1982, and assigned to Mile High Equipment Company.
A problem with the prior art under the counter ice making machines involves the closed compartments for and arrangement of components which necessitates complete removal of the housing unit from under the counter for maintenance and repair. Another problem is freeze cycle cut off before the ice bin is full; this problem results from use of the above-described prior art-type evaporator which harvests the ice cube bearing labs vertically. The vertically falling ice cube bearing slabs often stack vertically in the bin to the end that the bin ice cube level sensor is activated by the vertically stacked slabs prior to full bin achievement. Yet another problem is the cost of the ice making machine and increased cost of operation and maintenance.
The essential differences and advantages of the under the counter ice making machine constituting the subject matter of the present invention are as follows. First, the housing of the present invention includes a bottom compartment and a freezing compartment. The bottom compartment includes sidewalls, rear wall end, and an open front end having a grille providing an unblocked passage for the flow of air in and out of the compartment. Secondly, except for an evaporator which is located in the freezer compartment above an ice bin, the refrigerator components are housed in the bottom compartment. The freezer compartment including the ice bin is formed essentially of a unitary structure which includes the ice bin as a body portion, frame for a removable front door, sidewalls, and rear wall uprights for a top portion. The uprights of the rear wall end form a passage for an evaporator attached to a separate rear support panel. This unitary structure is supported by the bottom compartment and slidable therefrom to provide open access to the bottom compartment and top portion for maintenance and repair work to be performed on the entire refrigeration unit. Thirdly, this unitary structure reduces to a minimum the number of parts included in the housing and accordingly reduces the housing cost to a minimum. Fourthly, the removable portions of the freezer compartment body and top portions are rotocast plastic parts; thus, the costs of the bin body and top portions are substantially reduced. Fifthly, the evaporator is structured and located in the freezer compartment top portion for providing during ice cube harvest a tumbling, head over heels-type falling, action to ensure a substantially full ice bin before ice making cutoff.